Please critique my coop design, before I build it.

[HawaiiHomestead]

Hi Everyone,

I'm getting ready to build my first coop and would like some feedback on the design, please. Is the ventilation suitable?

I live in Hawaii, a little higher elevation. The coldest nights can reach low 50s, and the hottest days can reach mid 80s. We get a lot of rain, but it drains very quickly. The coop will have good wind protection from surrounding trees and open to a 13' x 30' enclosed run. I have 12 birds right now, but would like to grow.

 

[rosemarythyme]

Ventilation looks good (I assume the primary wind direction is in the back, so the biggest bank of vents is protected from wind/rain?) and size definitely allows for expansion.

 

[perkolator]

I'd imagine in Hawaii you could get away with an open-air coop and not need an enclosed space, maybe just a single wall for wind and sideways rain in a storm. PLENTY of ventilation in that design. I'm in CA and don't really have winter conditions either, so my chickens sleep in the run year-round where they prefer it.

 

[HawaiiHomestead]

Ventilation looks good (I assume the primary wind direction is in the back, so the biggest bank of vents is protected from wind/rain?) and size definitely allows for expansion.

Thanks! Yes, the wind is typically coming from the back.

 

[DobieLover]

I like it.
Because of the rain and only a 12" roof overhang you might want to consider fabricating and awning over the front vent.
Personally, I'd pair it with the same size vent on the back to allow lots of ventilation. You have VERY moderate temperatures so you'd never have to close windows.
I'd also install steps at the human door instead of a ramp.

 

[HawaiiHomestead]

great ideas, thank you! I've updated plans accordingly

 

[SourRoses]

If it were me, I'd move that hardware cloth up under the roof because bad gases, humidity, and heat like to rise.

I also like to make at least one area with low "intake" ventilation so if it's hot you can get a proper chimney effect going. And if it's a very still night, co2 (which sinks) won't be able to build up at floor level.
Doing a full-length hardware cloth door accomplishes that while also letting you see in, and the chickens see out so you can enter without startling everybody.

Expanding your overhang helps increase shade in the coop, prevent storms from constantly soaking your siding or blowing in sideways rain, and if on one end you add a bit more extra overhang you can protect an outdoor waterer and feeder.

Your dimensions seem a bit odd-numbered. @3KillerBs has one of the cleverest bits of advice I have ever heard, and that is to plan your build according to the dimensions lumber is sold in. I think it's increments of 4ft? (please correct me)
I mean, it makes me feel so silly for all the times I walked out of the hardware store with "extra" lumber after the cuts which I still had to pay for. "Well, we can make perches." ... lots and lots of perches.

ETA: Looking at it again, your hardware cloth dimensions are running into the same problem. 2'6" wide isn't a size I've seen on the market (unless you've already sourced your supplies?). I've seen a lot of 18", 36", and 48" wide. So that's a lot of labor cutting it, and leftovers that are hard to use.

ETA again: Putting it up on concrete blocks, and as a walk-in, means you need a fully framed out support for the floor and then a wood floor... so that's a lot of money sunk into the poopy side. Bags of concrete would be cheaper. Some gravel and then landscape cloth and then sand would be cheaper. Burying a hardware cloth apron and then doing deep litter would be cheaper. Unless your wood is affordably sourced of course.

Living in a humid, hot environment, my favorite coop was mostly hardware cloth with an oversized roof, an Aviary look. We had to leave it behind, now we have one that's half mesh walls and half enclosed (a former stall) and one that was a shed with ventilation added. The stall coop is far superior to the shed, in my view.

 

[3KillerBs]

Your dimensions seem a bit odd-numbered. @3KillerBs has one of the cleverest bits of advice I have ever heard, and that is to plan your build according to the dimensions lumber is sold in. I think it's increments of 4ft? (please correct me)
I mean, it makes me feel so silly for all the times I walked out of the hardware store with "extra" lumber after the cuts which I still had to pay for. "Well, we can make perches." ... lots and lots of perches.

I'm tied up this morning and can't take a good look at things, but this is one that I learned from my father and my husband learned from his father.

Lumber and sheet goods come standard in multiples of 4 feet so base your design on 4-foot units and you'll save in both labor and materials.

Hardware cloth comes in 12", 18", 24", 36", and 48" widths -- depending on where you're shopping.

In your climate an open air coop would be an excellent choice. I don't have a coop page for Neuchickenstein yet, but you can see my 16'x16' open air coop in my hot climate article: https://www.backyardchickens.com/articles/hot-climate-chicken-housing-and-care.77263/

Is there a particular reason you want a wooden floor?

 

[HawaiiHomestead]

I'm tied up this morning and can't take a good look at things, but this is one that I learned from my father and my husband learned from his father.

Lumber and sheet goods come standard in multiples of 4 feet so base your design on 4-foot units and you'll save in both labor and materials.

Hardware cloth comes in 12", 18", 24", 36", and 48" widths -- depending on where you're shopping.

In your climate an open air coop would be an excellent choice. I don't have a coop page for Neuchickenstein yet, but you can see my 16'x16' open air coop in my hot climate article: https://www.backyardchickens.com/articles/hot-climate-chicken-housing-and-care.77263/

Is there a particular reason you want a wooden floor?

Thank you, very insightful! I was trying to use all bases of 4', but I took another pass in effort to minimize required cuts. I got 36" hardware cloth, was figuring in 6" of overlap for fastening on either side, but that was probably too much.

I love that 16' x 16' open coop design, Neuchickenstein! I think I should re-evaluate my plans and come up with something closer to that. Would making the whole front wall open be suitable? It will be nestled under larger trees, similar to your prior Little Monitor Coop.

I was thinking elevated wood floor to help keep it dry inside. It drains super fast, but during the wet season we can get 4-5 inches of rain in a single day. I was worried an open floor might get too drafty and/or wet.

Do you think it would be better to roof in half of the (30') run instead and build nesting boxes, perches, etc. directly under that?

 

[3KillerBs]

I got 36" hardware cloth, was figuring in 6" of overlap for fastening on either side, but that was probably too much.

I didn't overlap my hardware cloth, but secured it edge-to-edge on the 4" posts. We're planning on putting on trim boards when the cost of wood comes down to further secure the edges of the wire.

If you enlarge this you can see how we did it.

Would making the whole front wall open be suitable?

Mine is like that. Essentially, a big wire box with a 3-sided shelter on the windward end -- though I *did* put a tarp on part of that wall in the winter when we were getting severe storms. ("Severe" by NC standards -- laughable to northerners. ).

I was thinking elevated wood floor to help keep it dry inside. It drains super fast, but during the wet season we can get 4-5 inches of rain in a single day. I was worried an open floor might get too drafty and/or wet.

That makes sense. I suppose it would depend on how well you can direct water around your coop and run and how the land slopes.

Do you think it would be better to roof in half of the (30') run instead and build nesting boxes, perches, etc. directly under that?

I love my open air setup.

As long as there is a place that always stays dry and where they can get out of the wind they should be happy. When I was learning about chickens at first the experienced people here taught me that the keys to chicken health are space, air, and good nutrition.